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Saturday, August 27, 2011

Party at the Fig Tree

Apparently my Brown Turkey Fig is THE place to hang out if you are one of the "bad boys" in the garden. I use this term loosely because I actually love having all these insects around!

I found this praying mantis tucked away on the underside of a fig leaf.

She watched me closely turning her head to keep an eye on me at every angle.

This baby katydid camouflaged herself very well. Can you see her? Her body is aligned with the stem of the fig leaf and her legs are spread mimicking the veins on the leaf. Very clever indeed!

This larger katydid was simply trying to blend in hoping I wouldn't see her. She kept very still while I poked my lens in her face.

This one wouldn't have any of it and decided to saunter off to find a quieter place.

These bearded robber flies really took a shine to each other. And you guessed it, on my fig tree! (A shout out to Elachee Nature Center, my local nature preserve, who helped identify these flies for me.)

Here is a closer look at this cool insect. They feed on other insects especially deer flies and horse flies but also flying ants and grasshoppers. They overtake them in flight at high speeds. I can tell you they made a lot of noise when they came in for a landing.

The large leaves on the fig tree make an excellent landing pad for the winged creatures in my garden and a great hiding place for those predators waiting to attack their prey. Not to mention it provides delicious fruit for us (and the birds).

I love finding new bugs in my garden but I'm rotten at sneaking up on them and taking their picture. Your photos have helped me ID the bugs that were too fast for me. :o) I LOVE praying mantis! So cool!!!

Those crazy katydids sure make a lot of noise!!! Worse than cidacas, I think. First time I've heard them is when we were in Georgia this summer on vacation. Maybe it's just because they start up about the time I want to go to sleep :-) I just realized I haven't seen any praying mantises in my garden this year. Maybe they don't like the heat either!

Ha ha!! I can live without the Katydids! But love the Mantis and Robber flies! The Robber flies are SO fun! I've re named them Dobby flies this summer as they remind me of Dobby on the Harry Potter movies. They will even sit on your hand if you are gentle with them! Fun photos Karin!

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Welcome to Southern Meadows where we garden for wildlife in Northeast Georgia (zone 8a). I'm Karin, the gardener and photographer. I hope you enjoy a little taste of Georgia and will come back and visit often! xo!